EEO INSIGHTS

Commander, Navy Reserve Force, 1915 Forrestal Drive, Norfolk, VA 23551

Volume 2, Issue 8 September 18, 2018

National Hispanic
Heritage Month

This year’s theme is: “Hispanics: One

Endless Voice to Enhance our Tradi-
tions.”. Captain Humbert “Rocky” Versace
received his commission at the U.S.
Military Academy at West Point in 1959.
After graduating from Ranger and
Airborne schools, he served in Korea with
the 1st Cavalry Division. He then volun-
teered to go to Vietnam as an advisor. In
1963, Versace’s unit came under intense
mortar, automatic weapons and small
arms fire during a mission to destroy a
Viet Cong command post. Severely
wounded, he continued to fight until his
capture.

Versace withstood exhaustive interrogations, torture and abuse for 23 months. He

attempted to escape four times and inspired other prisoners of war (POW). The last
time his fellow soldiers heard his voice, he was singing “God Bless America.”
Versace was finally isolated from other POWs in a series of jungle camps, caged,
manacled and placed on extremely reduced rations. The North Vietnamese
announced his execution September 26, 1965. His body has never been recovered.
Versace was nominated for the Medal of Honor in 1969 when an escaped POW
documented his bravery. He was finally awarded the medal in 2002.

Mary Alamar Young served 50 years in the Air Force civil service. During her
tenure, she championed the employment and advancement of women, minorities
and those with disabilities, before retiring in 2011. Her career began as an
administrative assistant where she discovered her passion for helping recruit
women and minorities into federal service and promoting equal opportunity.

Young’s efforts led to senior personnel recommending her for a new position, Air
Force Hispanic Employment Program (HEP) manager. She became the longest-
serving Air Force and only female HEP manager since the position was created,
serving in that position for ten years. Today, thousands of Hispanic-American Ser-
vice members throughout the world are protecting our nation. Just as in genera-
tions past, we honor our Hispanic community—military and civilian—for their sig-
nificant contributions to (or toward) protecting the United States and embodying
the DoD values that unite us all as one team.

1
 Business Tagline or Motto

Are there really any tangible benefits to diversity

and inclusion? Isn't this just corporate jargon?

Diversity and inclusion provides organizations with at least 3 tangible

benefits:
1. Serving our communities and being socially responsible. The communities
we serve are diverse. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the workforce and
the public we serve are growing in the number of women, people with
disabilities, people of color and immigrants each year. Currently, 54 million
men, women and children have disabilities, but just over one third of
working-age Americans with disabilities are employed. This number is expected
to increase by ten percent a year as our population ages and the number of
residents older than 65 doubles by 2050. By that same year, 54 percent of the
population will be "minorities" (any race other than non-Hispanic, single-race
whites), and one third will be of Hispanic ancestry. Diversity and inclusion in-
crease an agency's capacity to serve and protect people who have different
experiences or backgrounds and enhance its ability to be receptive to different
traditions and ideas.
2. Increasing innovation. Increased creativity is another byproduct of
capitalizing on differences. Historically, some of the most creative periods in
civilization emerged when people of different backgrounds have contact and
work together. The Renaissance grew in part from the meeting of peoples from
the East and the West. America's energy and inventiveness have been attributed
to the diversity of thought born from this nation of immigrants. Many scientific
discoveries and inventions have been developed by and for people with
disabilities. More recently, research has shown that effective diversity
management coupled with inclusive work environments improves
organizational performance and innovation. Employees from varied
backgrounds bring different perspectives, ideas and solutions to the workplace
that result in new products and services, challenge to the status quo, and
improved collaboration.
3. Getting a return on investment. Diversity and inclusion initiatives improve
the quality of an agency's workforce and are the catalyst for a better return on
investment in human capital. One of the biggest budget items in any agency is
the amount it spends on human resources in the form of salaries, benefits,
training, development and recruitment. In order to get a healthy return on
investment in human capital and maximize competitive advantage, an agency
must engage in recruitment and retention efforts that focus on acquiring the
best and the brightest talent. We cannot secure the best and brightest talent
unless we reach out broadly to all communities where such talent exists.
Agencies are ensuring they have the conditions in place that facilitate diversity
and cultivate inclusion in all aspects of their operations. With these facilitating
conditions, the return on investment is maximized, and employees are engaged
and productive. The result is faster resolution to conflict which avoids costly
litigation and settlements. These environments where all employees feel
included and valued are yielding greater commitment and motivation, which
translates into fewer resources spent on employee turnover, grievances and
complaints.

2

Commander Navy Reserve Force
Equal Employment Opportunity
Team
Cheryl Andrews
Command Deputy EEO Officer
1915 Forrestal Drive
Norfolk, Virginia 23551-4615
Phone: (757) 322-517
DSN: 262-5617
cheryl.a.andrews1@navy.mil
Albert Armstrong
EEO Specialist
1915 Forrestal Drive
Norfolk, Virginia 23551-4615
Phone: (757) 322-5619
DSN: 262-5619
albert.r.armstrong@navy.mil
Nicole Young
EEO Specialist
1915 Forrestal Drive
Norfolk, Virginia 23551-4615
Phone: (757) 322-5618
DSN: 262-5618
nicole.l.young@navy.mil
Commander Navy Reserve Force
Command Climate Specialist
Team
Reserve Force Command CCS:
Chief Shirley Price
1915 Forrestal Drive
Norfolk, Virginia 23551-4615
Phone: (757) 322-5660
DSN: 262-5660
shirley.price1@navy.mil
Navy Air Forces Reserve CCS:
Senior Chief Jimmy Escamilla
NAS North Island, California
Phone: (619) 545-4147
DSN: 735-4147
jimmy.escamilla@navy.mil
Business Tagline or Motto
Diversity and Inclusion
Are you sending the wrong signal?
All of us communicate daily in the workplace by sending unconscious signals
defined as “micro-inequities.” Micro-inequities are the subtle slights we send to
other people, through our social signals. Our social signals are sent to one
another through our behavior. They are called “micro” because the behaviors
are small; however, their impact can be enormous in the workplace.
Micro-inequities are usually unconscious thoughts that may cause one to feel
devalued, slighted, discouraged and excluded. Discrimination occurs in many
forms; often people just shake it off until they can no longer take it. One can be
singled out as a minority because of race, color, age, disability, religion, gender,
national origin, disability, marital status, weight, and economic status. So, what
types of signals are you sending in the workplace? Here are a few examples:
1. Being left out of a discussion or project, constantly being interrupted while
you are talking.
2. Trying to speak with someone who is reading/sending emails during
conversation.
3. Talking with someone who keeps looking at their watch.
4. Not being introduced in a meeting and then being ignored.
5. Avoidance of eye contact, rolling of the eyes, cutting down ideas before they
can be entertained, staying on the cell phone with no explanation,
mispronouncing your name or misspelling your name or change in voice
pitch, volume or rate.
6. Change in body posture, change in hand movements and gestures, fake or
masked forced smile.
These subtle slights may impact the workplace by causing employees to quit or
leave their job because of “unfair treatment.” This damages the command’s
recruitment and retention efforts, and lowers employee morale and productivity
levels. We can change our behaviors by first becoming aware of them and then
changing the behavior. We want to make sure we are sending micro-
affirmations, which are signals that cause people to feel valued, included, and
encouraged. Here are a few positive micro-affirmations: giving positive
feedback on a job well done, congratulating someone on their promotion or
contribution, and recognition of a coworkers importance to the team. Let’s all
make sure we are sending those positive affirmations in the workplace.